Green Spaces

Green roofs offer a series of benefits to buildings and to the urban environment. Their use in dry climates requires optimizing the choice of their components (i.e., vegetation, substrate and drainage layer) for the specific local climatic conditions, in order to minimize irrigations needs while preserving the attributes of the roof. In this study, we calibrated and validated an existing hydrological model—IHMORS—for the simulation of the hydrological performance of green roofs.

Green areas induce smaller increases in the air temperature than built-up areas. They can offer a solution to mitigating the urban heat island impacts during heat waves, since the cool air generated by a park is diffused into its immediate surroundings through forced or natural convection. The purpose of this study is to characterize the effect of several variables (park size, morphology of surrounding urban area, and wind speed) on the spreading of cool air.

The built environment might be associated with development of obesity and related disorders. We examined whether neighbourhood exposure to fast-food outlets and physical activity facilities were associated with adiposity in UK adults.

Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of Rear Admiral AP Revi IN (Retd.) Vs. Delhi Jal Board & Others dated 26/10/2017 regarding use of fresh water for gardening purpose in Vasant Kunj area of Delhi. NGT passes direction that DDA/MCD shall ensure that DJB shall supply treated sewage water for gardening at the fixed rate which will be the primary responsibility of the public authority. The residents, DDA/MCD and DJB are prohibited to use fresh water for gardening purpose.

The urban heat island effect (UHI) for inner land regions was investigated using satellite data, ground observations, and simulations with an Single-Layer Urban Canopy Parameterization (SLUCP) coupled into the regional Weather Research Forecasting model (WRF, http://wrf-model.org/index.php). Specifically, using the satellite-observed surface skin temperatures (Tskin), the intensity of the UHI was first compared for two inland cities (Xi’an City, China, and Oklahoma City (OKC)), which have different city populations and building densities.

Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of Society for Protection of Culture, Heritage, Environment, Traditions & Promotions of National Awareness (CHETNA) Vs. National Highway Authority of India & Others dated 05/09/2017 regarding greening of public spaces.

Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of Raghunath Jha Vs. Ministry of Urban Development dated 04/09/2017 regarding destruction of trees as a result of demolition of government residential colonies in Delhi.

Natural environments, including green spaces, may have beneficial impacts on brain development. However, longitudinal evidence of an association between long-term exposure to green spaces and cognitive development (including attention) in children is limited. The researchers evaluated the association between lifelong residential exposure to green space and attention during preschool and early primary school years.

This book brings together research findings and experiences from science, policy and practice to highlight and debate the importance of nature-based solutions (NBS) to climate change adaptation in urban areas. Emphasis is given to the potential of nature-based approaches to create multiple-benefits for society.